Salah fit for Egypt’s World Cup opener against Uruguay

Egypt head coach Hector Cuper says star player Mohamed Salah is ”almost 100%” certain to feature in Friday’s World Cup opener against Uruguay in Yekaterinburg.

The Liverpool forward damaged his shoulder ligaments in the Champions League final last month following a challenge from Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos and was a doubt for the Pharaoh’s first match having failed to play in any of the warm-up games.

But when asked about Salah’s potential involvement against Uruguay, Cuper said “I can almost assure you 100% he will play, save unforeseen circumstances at the very last minute,”

“He could become the top goalscorer here and one of the greatest players.”

Cuper said Salah was “doing very well” and had recovered “very, very quickly”.

He added: “We’re trying to make him feel confident. The doctors are giving him the option to play or not, but I know Salah very well and I’m sure he’s not afraid, he’s not fearful.”

Salah, 25, will be hoping to replicate his goalscoring exploits in Russia. He bagged a staggering 44 goals in all competitions last season.

Following their match against Uruguay, Egypt face hosts Russia and Saudi Arabia in Group A.